UFC 264 results, highlights: Dustin Poirier takes TKO victory after Conor McGregor injures his leg

LAS VEGAS – Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor combined five minutes of fury to open their pay-per-view trilogy fight on Saturday at the headliner of UFC 264. That was until a left ankle injury of McGregor in the closing seconds of the first round causes an end to the fight.

Poirier (28-6, 1 NC) was credited with the TKO victory in the first round after McGregor (22-6), who finished the first round sitting against the cage wall while absorbing blows, did could not continue. McGregor had attempted a two-strike combination in the last 10 seconds, but landed incorrectly on his left foot, spinning his ankle.

The pro-McGregor crowd inside T-Mobile Arena booed the result given how unforeseen it was after an explosive first round. Early speculation was that McGregor’s ankle was broken and Poirier later said he believed McGregor had initially bruised him after he landed an early kick. UFC President Dana White later confirmed that McGregor suffered a lower shin injury in his left leg.

“He fractured it on one of the failures early in the fight and then he broke on a punch for sure,” Poirier said. “I pointed it out at the start of the fight, that’s when I checked for a kick, that’s when it cracked. It probably was. cracked and then something twisted with the punch. “

McGregor, 32, who did the post-fight interview while still sitting against the cage wall, vehemently exclaimed that Poirier’s victory did nothing to end their rivalry.

“It is not finished !” McGregor said. “I was removing his bleeding head, kicking his bleeding leg.

“It’s not over. If I have to get this out for him, it’s out there, I don’t care!”

An aggressive McGregor relied a lot more on movement and kicking to take on the aggressor role from the start. He missed a backward spinning kick to open things up, but managed to land front kicks to the body.

Poirier, 32, responded well with the same calf kicks he used in their January rematch to score a second-round TKO that tied the series, which also included a first-round TKO of McGregor in their 2014 featherweight fight.

The action started to heat up halfway through when McGregor pulled off a two-stroke combination and Poirier countered with a huge left hook that tripped McGregor.

“He hit me with a good cross just like the last fight. I didn’t see him and he cut me and I was a little buzzed,” Poirier said.

McGregor shot for a takedown – despite insulting Poirier for doing the same in their rematch – and was ultimately put on his own back by Poirier after a standing clinch. But McGregor almost subdued Poirier with a surprising guillotine attempt that got the crowd moving.

Poirier escaped the strangulation attempt and took first place. That’s when the fight got wilder as Poirier landed big elbows from the top position to be countered by McGregor with some of his own behind his back, while also mixing up a pair of kicks.

“[McGregor] put his fingers in my gloves and pull me down to kick the kicks, ”Poirier said. “This guy is a dust bag, man. Everyone hoot, you can kiss my whole ass. “

McGregor applied a second guillotine attempt but couldn’t hold it back and Poirier closed his ground action by standing up to land a nasty flurry of heavy blows. McGregor rallied to stand up but fell in the dying seconds when he turned his left ankle and Poirier jumped with hammer fists up to the horn.

Poirier shared after the fight how upset he was with McGregor’s antics, which included the mention of Poirier’s wife in several derogatory ways. McGregor has also said on several occasions that he will kill Poirier.

“There is no limit with trash talk, but murder is something you don’t clown with. There is no turning back to that,” Poirier said. “This guy said he was going to kill me and all kinds of things.

“You don’t talk like that to people. You don’t talk like that, man. I hope this guy comes home safe and sound to his in-laws.”

CBS Sports was with you all the way on Saturday, bringing you all of the UFC 264 results and highlights below.

UFC 264 card and results

• Dustin Poirier beat. Conor McGregor via First Round TKO (injury)
• Gilbert Burns beat. Stephen Thompson via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Tai Tuivasa beat. Greg Hardy via First Round KO (punch)
• Irene Aldana beat. Yana Kunitskaya via TKO in the first round (punches)
• Sean O’Malley beat. Kris Moutinho via TKO in the third round (punches)
• Max Griffin def. Carlos Condit by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
• Michel Pereira beat. Niko Price via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Ilia Topuria beat. Ryan Hall by first round knockout (punches)
• Dricus Du Plessis def. Trevin Giles via Second Round KO (punch)
• Jennifer Maia has beaten. Jessica Eye via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
• Brad Tavares beat. Omari Akhmedov by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Zhalgas Zhumagulov beat. Jerome Rivera via First Round Submission (Standing Guillotine Choke)